HALIFAX – Scores of Occupy Nova Scotia protesters camped outside Halifax City Hall put down their placards and bongos Sunday and picked up brooms, sponges and dishcloths instead.
The demonstrators, who moved in about three weeks ago, started a cleanup prior to a temporary relocation that will allow Remembrance Day ceremonies to go ahead at the city’s main cenotaph.
Brian Crouse, a spokesman for the group, said he expected all 60 protesters to move their tents to nearby Victoria Park by Tuesday.
But he said the plan is to return to the public square known as the Grand Parade on Saturday.
“My mother always told me, if you make a mess, clean it up,” Crouse said in an interview after using a bullhorn to instruct his comrades to fan out with garbage bags and start picking up the detritus around the camp, which is literally in the shadow of the cenotaph.
“Remembrance day is an important ceremony, and Halifax’s ceremonies are held here. This square will be filled with thousands of people. It was very important to us that we respect the veterans wishes on this.”
On Saturday, about two dozen veterans showed up at the cenotaph to stage their own protest – this one drawing attention to pension clawbacks and budget cuts at Veterans Affairs. Some of the former soldiers, sailors and aircrew said they didn’t have a problem sharing the square with the Occupy group, saying Canadians have long fought to preserve the right to freedom of speech.
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Nova Scotians gathered in solidarity with Black and Indigenous voices after a week of budget protests
As the cleanup started Sunday, protesters scrubbed a police memorial with soapy brushes and sponges. Others swept the square, washed dishes or sorted through piles of damp clothing. A few of the 40 tents were taken down, but the big move isn’t expected until Tuesday.
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On Wednesday, a ceremony at the square will recall the arrest of more than 30,000 Jews by the Nazis in 1938 in Germany and Austria.
Until then, much work needs to be done to clear the square. There were clotheslines to take down, a kitchen tent to disassemble and the protesters will have to move an outdoor lounge area that includes a large carpet, an armchair and an assortment of bongos.
Mayor Peter Kelly has said he’s glad the protesters are temporarily vacating the square, but he has been vague about what will happen when they return.
The square is where the city has its annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony and a giant New Year’s Eve party.
Crouse insisted his group has widespread public support, but there were indications the movement is losing momentum on the West Coast.
In Vancouver, Mayor Gregor Robertson said the Occupy Vancouver camp must be shut down following the death Saturday of a woman who was found unresponsive in a tent in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery.
The mayor of Victoria, Dean Fortin, has said the Occupy site at Centennial Square should be cleared out because it has become a risk to public safety.
In Halifax, Crouse said the tragedy in Vancouver must be put into the right context.
“It’s terrible and unfortunate and sad that this young woman lost her life,” he said.
“These movements attract all kinds of people. … There could be people here struggling with addiction problems or any number of issues, but the Occupy movement didn’t create these people. What the Occupy movement has done is bring them into a smaller community where they actually have value and can contribute.”
Earlier in the day, the protesters heard from a number of speakers who encouraged them to keep up their fight.
“This is a political demonstration,” said Kyle Buott, president of the Halifax-Dartmouth & District Labour Council. “What we’re doing here is challenging the corporate greed and the banks’ control of our economy, and the way we have no say in our future in Nova Scotia.”
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